Carrier for belt conveyers.



w. w. STEPHENS.

CARRIER FOR BELT CONVEYERS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC.4| l9ll RENEWED NOV- l2. 1917.

1 ,25 5,658. Patented Feb. 5, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1- ll/III M imi!!! Ami/ m W. W. STEPHENS.

CARRIER FOR BELT CONVEYERS. APPLICATION FILED 950.4. 1911. RENEWED NOV. 12.1911.

1,255,658. A Patented Feb. 5,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- fizz/E2275? W2 zmyzz zm STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILEY W. STEPHENS, 0F AURORA, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO STEBI-IENS-ADAMSON 00., A. CORPQBATION OE ILLINOIS.

GAIBIBIER FOR BELT CONVEYEBS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 5,1218.

hpplication filed December 4, 1911, Serial No. 663,?54'. Renewed November'12, 19 17. SerialNo. 201,658.

To all whom it may concern:

' B it n wn a I; WILEY W smem s,

a citizen of the United States, and resident of Aurora, county of Kane, and State of 6 Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful- Improvements in Carriers for Belt Qonveyers,-'of which the following is a specification, and which are illustrated in the accompanyin'g drawings, forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to rollers for carrying endless'belts used in conveying material, such as grain, coal, ore, gravel, etc.

The unit in rollers for belt conveyors as heretofore constructed has consisted of a plurality of rollers mounted upon a common support, the troughing and guide rollers" usually being mounted upon a bracket integral with the support for the carrying r ler ,or' upenia pe rm ef'i d eedent support; The dimensions of such-units has necessarily been governed by the Width of the to'be employed' or the cross-sec tional con-fi u n d s r #0. gi the 1081t carrying its load.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a roller-and supporting bracket therefor which shall constitute a single" unit, whereby sets of rollers, consistingfofi a plurality of such units may be asseinbled in cooperative relation upon a suita upp rt; the n ts bein ad pted fe ie'rri eith a supporting, r ug n' uide, or return er hereby carri r or b t f a'r ce W hs and f ef Qlls-eross- I 'eti n'al' setfa e onfi urati ns may be built spires! s ni s'br varyi g the numbe emp yee, d ng, t0 t e dth or th. el in. i l; h I itjs'wliibh' are to ughii g of g idi g the e t as em ent their periphera ages t t e iimpr ee s te'ad them dfl r e h r intended ctl'on';

. iouree a b esket oke sewing has, er forsfup ea one in il e bis te git-te Bast atth rtiu r d with the widthof'thehelti aim-when the is heme I rollers are. revolubly mounted on tubular axles, connecting the axles of adjacent units by nipples so that the lubricant applied to one unit may serveall of the set so connecte'd.

The invention is exemplified in the structures illustrated in the accompanying drawings, Wherei'n Figure l is a perspective of one of the units, some of the parts being broken away;

Fig. 2 is an elevation, Viewed transversely with reference to the belt, of a set of unit rollers arranged for carrying a belt, troughed as to its load-carrying stretch and fiat as to itsreturn stretch;

Fig. 3 is a View similar to Fig. 2, a set composed of unit rollers being shown differently arranged; Fig. 4 is a perspective of one of the unit am ne earl-ring ut th in nt n each unit qm'pr js'a Sher r ller inp ntediipon s itable axle ed in a bra et W ad pt d f r att mf eb in ny he ti n' to se 'erfi s k bar Th se e a unit ar identi l n s ed n tru tie and may be upo th S pport n lsluh num r such relative positions as may-be re n V e Q fll W dth .Qf be t: to, 'ied a d e i l faee"config ation o be.

b lt be g j l a" and; when used; th when required, the Set vertically. "Such d 1 ,1- ca'r'ryir both th return stret h f the fli s 1 1 Y 05. b twes as they be arrange eh? me and t a h nd 'if' h rollers befin sufiici'ently close proximity to real unit 0.1. sa Se? m an inclination prevent the belt from sagging under the load and thereby causing it to break over the end of the roller. One of the features of the invention consists in so constructing the several units that they may be thus advantageously' arranged.

In the construction as illustrated in Fig. 1, the unit comprises a short roller, as 10, having a tubular hub 11 which is sleeved upona' tubular axle 12, the ends of which are fixed in the side members13, 14, of a U- shaped bracket, which may be a malleable casting or be formed of a single plate of rolled metal, and the cross-member 15 of which is adapted to be secured to a supporting base, apertures or bolt holes, as 16, being provided for this purpose.

As a convenient means for fixing the axle Within the arms of the bracket, its ends may be threaded, as shown at 17 a nut 18 being applied to the threaded end and being adapted tofit into a recess 19 formed in the end of the side member, as 18, of the'bracket. Thenut is preferably of greater diameter than the recess 19, and is provided with a peripheral-channel20 for receiving the edges of the recess.

The axle 12 is of suflicient length to project at each end beyond the bracket, and affords means for'the attachment of a grease cup 21, the axle being perforated, as shown at. 22, to permit the grease to reach the inner or bearing face of the hub 11. i

In the modification shown in Figs. 4 and 5, ball bearings are used, the hub 11 of the roller 10 being fixed upon' an axle 23 which is journaled on a set of balls 24 mounted in a suitable race housed within the casing,

comprising a cup 25, which is set through an aperture in the side members 13 of the bracket, a cap 26 being fitted over the inner and open end of the cup 25 and secured to the bracket member in any suitable manner, as shown by means of bolts 27 28.

In assembling the unit rollers in sets the number employed will be determined by the width of the belt. A; suitable support is provided which may consist of a single bar, as 29, to which-the brackets of the several units are secured, preferably by means of bolts, as 30. When it isdesired to trough the belt the outer units 31, 32 (referring to Fig. 2), or 33, 34 (referrin to Fig. 3), may be set at y inserting under each a wedge-block, as-35, 36,- the upper surface of which has the desired inclination, the'securing bolts being passed through the cross member of the bracket, the wedge-block and the supporting bar, as shown. When guide rollers are required for limiting lateral movement of the belt, additional units, as 37,

38, may for this purpose be secured to uprights39, 40.

The framework-for carrying the supports for the several sets of units may be of any suitable form and is not herein fully shown, there being represented merely longitudinal stringers 41, 42, to which the bars 29 for supporting the rollers carrying the service stretch of the belt, and the bars, as 43, for supporting the rollers carrying the return stretch of the belt, may be secured.

The unit rollers are adapted to be arranged in a variety of forms in addition to those shown in the drawings, as many being employed in each set as the size or character ofthe belt and the work to be performed may demand.

When the form of construction illustrated in detail in Fig. 1 is followed, adjacent units are preferably connectedtogether by means of nipples 44 or 45, these ni ples being.

thereby providing for the lubrication of all of the rollers of each set by means of grease cups attached to the outer ends of the axles of the outer rollers.

By thus making the individual roller with the bracket within which it is mounted instead of a set of rollers permanently united, all of the units being identical in construction, it becomes necessary only for the millwright to provide himself with the requisite number of units that he construct the supporting frame and arrange the various units to meet the exigencies of any situation which may present itself. Special supports for complete sets of rollers are unnecessary.

While the troughing and supporting rollers are shown in the drawings as being axially alined, this arrangement is not essentialunless. it is desired to connect the axles of adjacent rollers by means of nipples as above described.

I claim as my invention- 1. A conveyer compriing, in combination, a belt, a bar extending transversely beneath the belt, such bar having its middle portion horizontal and its end portions upwardly inclined, a plurality of alined rollers for engaging the'belt, a plurality of like independent U-shaped brackets the arms of each bracket embracing and rotatably supporting clined portions of the bar.-

.2. A, conveyer compr sing, 1n combination, a belt, a frame comprising a cross-member beneath the belt and uprights ateach side 'of the belt, a plurality of like U-shaped brackets having their cross-members seated against .and secured, respectively, to the 1,255,668 r I g a i i 8 cross member and uprights of the frame, and ment, the axes of the end rollers being inrollers journaled between the arms of the clined and the axes of the intermediate roller 10 several brackets;f -b 1 0r rollers being horizontal.

3. A support or a conveying e t having in combinatioma frame element, a ilurality WILEY STEPHENS of alined rollers for engaging the belt, each Witnesses of the rollers being journaled in a. separate C. AQKRAUSE,

U-shaped bracket mountedon the frame ele- E. PJCALKINS.

copies of this patenting: be obtalned tor five cents each, by addressing the comminioner at intents,

Washington. D. 0." 

